Author Topic: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...  (Read 30907 times)

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Offline Kotowboy

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Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« on: December 22, 2020, 09:54:13 AM »
Not far off two years since this album was released...


• How did you feel about it two years ago ?

• How do you feel about it now ?


I liked it a lot and still play it every once in a while. I'm not tired of it yet because I haven't over played it. Much like The Astonishing.

I tend to listen to new albums on repeat for like a week and then very sporadically after that so they still seem "new".

I think it's easily the best Mangini era album and the closest to the "classic" ( Scenes - Octavarium ) Era since Octavarium.

Offline Madman Shepherd

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #1 on: December 22, 2020, 10:09:19 AM »




I tend to listen to new albums on repeat for like a week and then very sporadically after that...


Same here although this one got constant play. I don't pull it out much anymore, mainly because I'm A) not listening to as much music lately and B) I've been compulsively buying a bunch of other music so that usually gets first preference.

Simply put, DoT is one of my three favorite DT albums. I love absolutely everything about it. I love that James has more lyrical contributions. I love how it sounds. I love the subject matter of the songs. I love that Mangini contributed. I love that they ate a lot of BBQ while recording it.

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #2 on: December 22, 2020, 10:31:22 AM »
The weirdest album for me.

I agree with everything they've done. Writing it together and bonding over it. More band effort after The Astonishing. More room (137) for Mangini. More lyricists. Heavier stuff but no useless wanking. They basically did the album I would have ordered them to do if it was up to me, and yet as much as I enjoy all the songs, the album had no staying power at all for me. It came and it went and it fell very quickly off my rotation, and probably is the DT album that survived the least in my active playing since I'm a fan. I even enjoyed the songs live, but once again I didn't come back to it after the live show.

It's like when you tell a friend how you like girls, both physically and personality wise, they let you meet a friend that is exactly how you described your dream girl and yet.... yeah, she's pretty, but.... no, the spark isn't there. Weirdest feeling ever. The next album will probably help to put d/t more in perspective for me.
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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #3 on: December 22, 2020, 11:05:45 AM »
FANTASTIC analogy.   

Offline Architeuthis

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #4 on: December 22, 2020, 11:19:52 AM »
I think this album will age well and stand the test of time. I keep it in rotation just enough to where it sounds fresh everytime I come back to it.  It's a very well written and brilliant album I must say!  I love the production, sounds organic yet polished at the same time. 
d/t also has some heavy weight contender songs that stand out in the entire Dream Theater catalog.   Barstool Warrior, Fall Into The Light, Signal to Noise, At Wits End,  Pale Blue Dot,   
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Offline Madman Shepherd

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #5 on: December 22, 2020, 11:50:37 AM »
The weirdest album for me.

I agree with everything they've done. Writing it together and bonding over it. More band effort after The Astonishing. More room (137) for Mangini. More lyricists. Heavier stuff but no useless wanking. They basically did the album I would have ordered them to do if it was up to me, and yet as much as I enjoy all the songs, the album had no staying power at all for me. It came and it went and it fell very quickly off my rotation, and probably is the DT album that survived the least in my active playing since I'm a fan. I even enjoyed the songs live, but once again I didn't come back to it after the live show.

It's like when you tell a friend how you like girls, both physically and personality wise, they let you meet a friend that is exactly how you described your dream girl and yet.... yeah, she's pretty, but.... no, the spark isn't there. Weirdest feeling ever. The next album will probably help to put d/t more in perspective for me.

There are a lot of people on this very forum and people I've met in real life that just aren't into the band or this music anymore. I'm not saying that you're one of them but tastes change as people grow older. Even I struggle with that a bit with some bands. Sadly, a lot of those people don't realize they're the problem and not the band.

Again, not directed at you. Just a thought.

Offline DarkLord_Lalinc

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #6 on: December 22, 2020, 12:50:38 PM »
To me, DOT is what the album Dream Theater should've been (excluding Illumination Theory, which is amazing as it is). It sounds amazing, it's very concise and basically explores everything DT is all about very successfully.

Not my favorite album of the MM era, for sure, as that title belongs to The Astonishing (yeah, I know, spare me the hate) but it's definitely up there with ADOTE every now and then. Barstool Warrior, At Wit's End and Pale Blue Dot feel like timeless classics to me, and I hope to keep seeing them appear in future setlists.
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Offline hunnus2000

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #7 on: December 22, 2020, 01:01:28 PM »
To me, DOT is what the album Dream Theater should've been (excluding Illumination Theory, which is amazing as it is). It sounds amazing, it's very concise and basically explores everything DT is all about very successfully.

Not my favorite album of the MM era, for sure, as that title belongs to The Astonishing (yeah, I know, spare me the hate) but it's definitely up there with ADOTE every now and then. Barstool Warrior, At Wit's End and Pale Blue Dot feel like timeless classics to me, and I hope to keep seeing them appear in future setlists.

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Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #8 on: December 22, 2020, 01:33:44 PM »
I mean, it's pretty good. 
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Offline Kotowboy

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #9 on: December 22, 2020, 01:55:06 PM »
It doesn't seem just under 2 years old to me.

For whatever reason it seems like it came out maybe 3 years ago.

Offline kirksnosehair

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #10 on: December 22, 2020, 02:03:58 PM »
It's one of the two best Mangini-era releases.  I rank the Mangini albums like this:


01. - A Dramatic Turn of Events - to me this was about as close to a perfect Dream Theater album as you can get.  I think it's one of the best albums of their entire career and I put it right up there with Images and Words and Six Degrees.


02. - Distance Over Time - sort of a return to form after The Astonishing.  It's decent, but kind of forgettable.  And I don't feel very compelled to replay it.  When ADTOE came out it stayed in my CD player in my car for at least 3 or 4 months solid.  After about 5 or 6 listens to this one I kind of lost interest in it.


03 - Dream Theater - totally phoned-in sounding.  The songwriting and production here are not Dream Theater's finest moment.  The so-called "epic" with the utterly inexplicable and totally out of place classical movie soundtrack section sounds like a warm-up jam session for a band about to play a gig.  There are a couple of really good tracks sprinkled across this platter of mediocrity.  This, to me, sounded like an obligation album, like they HAD TO do it, not like they WANTED TO do it. 


04 - The Astonishing - I view this more as a "John Petrucci featuring Dream Theater" album than as a "Dream Theater" album.  I get it.  This was Petrucci's white whale.  An album of this kind has been part of Petrucci's DNA since back in the days of Systematic Chaos when he expressed interest in many interviews in writing more "Science Fiction / Fantasy" style material. So, I was kind of shocked at first when Dream Theater announced they were making a rock-opera and it would be a double album.  But once the album came out and I had a chance to listen and check out the lyrics, well, it's just not what I listen to Dream Theater for. 

Offline Architeuthis

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #11 on: December 22, 2020, 02:21:26 PM »



04 - The Astonishing - I view this more as a "John Petrucci featuring Dream Theater" album than as a "Dream Theater" album.  I get it.  This was Petrucci's white whale.  An album of this kind has been part of Petrucci's DNA since back in the days of Systematic Chaos when he expressed interest in many interviews in writing more "Science Fiction / Fantasy" style material. So, I was kind of shocked at first when Dream Theater announced they were making a rock-opera and it would be a double album.  But once the album came out and I had a chance to listen and check out the lyrics, well, it's just not what I listen to Dream Theater for.
It's interesting that DT fans have such different tastes within the bands catalog. I personally love TA and think it is a top tier DT album!  I would rather have a live bluray from that tour than the Distant Memories release.  I'm not bashing Distant Memories though, as it is a beautiful presentation..
TA was just so unique and special with Labrie's finest moments.   :coolio
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Offline ThatOneGuy2112

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #12 on: December 22, 2020, 02:30:15 PM »
Has it already been 2 years? Jesus..

I listened to it quite a bit when it was first released, and maybe a few times here and there later in the year, but I don't think I've played it a single time in its entirety during this whole year. This happens often for me when listening to new music constantly, with only the best and most notable getting added to more regular rotation.

I don't think anything in particular is terribly wrong with D/T (besides R137 of course). It has some of DT's best material in years, but at the end of the day, it still wasn't very memorable. It was a definite return to form following The Astonishing, but it was another helping of more of the same from the band. Not that that's the worst thing in the world if the songs are good, which is somewhat the case with D/T imo.

Offline geeeemo

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #13 on: December 22, 2020, 02:38:08 PM »



04 - The Astonishing - I view this more as a "John Petrucci featuring Dream Theater" album than as a "Dream Theater" album.  I get it.  This was Petrucci's white whale.  An album of this kind has been part of Petrucci's DNA since back in the days of Systematic Chaos when he expressed interest in many interviews in writing more "Science Fiction / Fantasy" style material. So, I was kind of shocked at first when Dream Theater announced they were making a rock-opera and it would be a double album.  But once the album came out and I had a chance to listen and check out the lyrics, well, it's just not what I listen to Dream Theater for.

Agree with this.  Just listened to TA yesterday - fab as ever!
It's interesting that DT fans have such different tastes within the bands catalog. I personally love TA and think it is a top tier DT album!  I would rather have a live bluray from that tour than the Distant Memories release.  I'm not bashing Distant Memories though, as it is a beautiful presentation..
TA was just so unique and special with Labrie's finest moments.   :coolio

Offline KevShmev

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #14 on: December 22, 2020, 03:45:37 PM »
I like it a lot, but I have found over time that Fall into the Light and At Wit's End are the only two songs I will ever revisit on their own when randomly picking songs to turn on.  Out of Reach and the bonus track Viper King are still money as well, I suppose.  Most of the rest is good, the exceptions being Untethered Angel and Paralyzed both which I quickly tossed into the bland pile along with On the Backs of Angels, A Rite of Passage and Forsaken.

Ultimately, it's probably my 2nd or 3rd favorite album with Mangini (The Astonishing is first), but it would have a hard time at this juncture breaking into my DT top 10.

Offline emtee

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #15 on: December 22, 2020, 03:50:00 PM »
It's my favorite of the MM  era and I spun it regularly for about 6 months. When I want a dose of DT  I seem to go back to I&W thru SDoiT. That's my sweet spot.

Offline The Letter M

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #16 on: December 22, 2020, 04:00:26 PM »
This thread spurred me on to spin d/t just now, and it still holds up for me. I think I still enjoy it about as much as I did when it first came out, nearly two years now (wow), but it's really only a bit better than the previous two. Dream Theater have really kind of drifted off my music-listening radar in recent years, and The Astonishing didn't really help that, but d/t kind of brought me back a bit. Maybe I Just haven't also been in the mood to listen to a lot of the heavier prog and prog-metal lately, or perhaps I've just grown a bit tired of DT's sound over the last decade?

At any rate, it's still a pretty good album over-all, and I still enjoy it whenever I do listen to it, but I don't always go to it right away if I want a DT fix.

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #17 on: December 22, 2020, 05:46:09 PM »
When it released, it was upper mid-tier for me. Nowadays, it's still mid-tier Dream Theater (really awesome but not quite absolutely brilliant) for me, though I'd rank it one spot lower on my DT album rankings (used to be #6, now it's #7 because I've grown to love The Astonishing). At Wit's End and Out of Reach are a little less interesting to me now than they used to be. On the more positive side, Fall Into The Light and Pale Blue Dot are 10/10s, though, and S2N comes pretty close. Untethered Angel is also more enjoyable than it used to be.

Offline Trav86

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #18 on: December 22, 2020, 06:35:14 PM »
It's my favorite of the MM  era and I spun it regularly for about 6 months. When I want a dose of DT  I seem to go back to I&W thru SDoiT. That's my sweet spot.

Same here. When I get in a DT mood, that’s usually where I go. Maybe even take a step back and say WDADU-SFAM.  I’ll sometimes get on a “new” DT kick where I just listen to the last four but once I throw on a classic, I stay there. I would probably say that what most people consider the golden period (SDOIT-8V) as well as SC and BCSL, are my least listened to albums.
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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #19 on: December 22, 2020, 10:13:12 PM »
People and even the band seemed to hype about Pale Blue Dot but I think it's kinda boring. I don't remember the last I listened it even though I spin the album time to time. At Wit's End and Barstool Warrior are my fav. Out Of Reach is a good touch and has the feeling of Kevin Moore sound which I miss the most.
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Offline Ben_Jamin

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #20 on: December 22, 2020, 10:30:20 PM »
I'll still listen to songs from the album. One song that grew on me is Barstool Warrior, it grew immensely for me since it's release. Out of Reach too.

Pale Blue Dot, is still in the middle for me. I like it, but others are more meaningful to me, have more melodies I like, etc... I do like it's structure, and how it has this wonderous skeptical vibe and atmosphere. 
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Offline erwinrafael

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #21 on: December 22, 2020, 11:44:44 PM »
Still listen to this at least once a week either as a full album or as part of a "double album" playlist I did combining with DT12 with the album title "Dream Theater: Now".

Offline Cool Chris

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #22 on: December 22, 2020, 11:49:35 PM »
At Wit's End is about the only individual song I will reach for when in the mood for some solid DT. Paralyzed/FitL/BS is a great run. Everything else is ok. Nothing is an automatic skip. I don't like to judge songs on what I think they should be, but PBD is a real missed opportunity in my book. Some good elements there, lots of potential.... it just didn't come together well.
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Online MirrorMask

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #23 on: December 23, 2020, 01:07:05 AM »
The weirdest album for me.

I agree with everything they've done. Writing it together and bonding over it. More band effort after The Astonishing. More room (137) for Mangini. More lyricists. Heavier stuff but no useless wanking. They basically did the album I would have ordered them to do if it was up to me, and yet as much as I enjoy all the songs, the album had no staying power at all for me. It came and it went and it fell very quickly off my rotation, and probably is the DT album that survived the least in my active playing since I'm a fan. I even enjoyed the songs live, but once again I didn't come back to it after the live show.

It's like when you tell a friend how you like girls, both physically and personality wise, they let you meet a friend that is exactly how you described your dream girl and yet.... yeah, she's pretty, but.... no, the spark isn't there. Weirdest feeling ever. The next album will probably help to put d/t more in perspective for me.

There are a lot of people on this very forum and people I've met in real life that just aren't into the band or this music anymore. I'm not saying that you're one of them but tastes change as people grow older. Even I struggle with that a bit with some bands. Sadly, a lot of those people don't realize they're the problem and not the band.

Again, not directed at you. Just a thought.

You know that the thought crossed my mind? I'm a fan since 1999 and I've always liked more or less basically anything they've ever done, and I loooooove The Astonishing for example. It would be a musical "tragedy", with due brackets, if I just happened to move past the prog metal they offer and that I've always liked in 20 years, with concerts of them always being a high priority for me and always enjoying them. That's what I said that the new album will put things more in perspective for me, I hope to not come to the realization that I'm just not into that music anymore, I thought and assumed DT were by now one of those bands for which I'm in for the long haul.
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Online SwedishGoose

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #24 on: December 23, 2020, 02:01:47 AM »
It's a Dream Theater album so it's good of course. But it never really clicked with me.
I never have the urge to listen to it and these days it only comes on if a song is played if I run a random selection.

I think for me that it was a huge let down after the masterpiece that was The Astonishing. That one I cam still get the urge to listen to in full.

Distance Over Time is to me in the lower third of their discography. It's good but not great.

Offline Zydar

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #25 on: December 23, 2020, 02:41:14 AM »
I think it was a major step up for me coming from The Astonishing, an album I never got into and would rank last in their discography. DoT has many great songs like Barstool Warrior, At Wit's End, Unthethered Angel, and my personal favourite Fall Into The Light. I really like Viper King as well. I hope they continue down this path with the next one. It's an album I return to from time to time.
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Offline Kotowboy

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #26 on: December 23, 2020, 03:01:21 AM »
People and even the band seemed to hype about Pale Blue Dot but I think it's kinda boring.

Exactly my feelings about Surrender to Reason, Along for the Ride and Breaking All Illusions.  :(

Oh and IMO - Illumination Theory is my least favourite overall epic I think.

Offline Architeuthis

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #27 on: December 23, 2020, 04:13:31 AM »
I really like Viper King as well.
That song should be played live. It would be a great song to close a show right after playing a nice epic, and go out on a fun lighter note..
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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #28 on: December 23, 2020, 07:28:48 AM »
It's a Dream Theater album so it's good of course. But it never really clicked with me.
I never have the urge to listen to it and these days it only comes on if a song is played if I run a random selection.

Distance Over Time is to me in the lower third of their discography. It's good but not great.

I deleted the part about The Astonishing because it's not relevant (and I don't particularly agree, for the record).    But the rest is how I feel abuot D/T.   I have to say, it's in the same category as Systematic Chaos and Black Clouds; really good when compared to other bands, but somehow missing the ingredient that elevates it to transcendent (like previous DT work).   It's NOT the drummers (though I prefer Portnoy to Mangini), but I don't know what it is. 

Offline hunnus2000

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #29 on: December 23, 2020, 08:01:55 AM »
D/T still does it for me but I haven't listened to it in quite awhile. The fact that I don't drive into work anymore AND there is new music out there is the main reason why.

And at the risk of derailing this thread, What is this infatuation with Kevin Moore? His work with DT only consisted of 2 albums. Yes - I know he played on Awake but he was so checked out by then that he should have been considered a session keyboardist. There's nothing inspiring about the keyboards on that album.

Offline gzarruk

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #30 on: December 23, 2020, 11:12:53 AM »
And at the risk of derailing this thread, What is this infatuation with Kevin Moore? His work with DT only consisted of 2 albums. Yes - I know he played on Awake but he was so checked out by then that he should have been considered a session keyboardist. There's nothing inspiring about the keyboards on that album.

I'm not in the "KM was the best thing that could happen to this band" train, but I think the keyboards on Awake are fantastic. It's still him writing the stuff with the rest of them, and his completely different approach on that album (compared to IAW and WDADU) showed how versatile he was. The album has this kind of dark atmosphere due to the keyboard sounds he used, and it compliments the album really well, I mean, just listen to LSOAD, it's perfect.

As for the D/T discussion, I still love it, as almost everything done by the band, though I'm still not able to properly rank it among the other albums (it's at the top half for sure, tho). The only thing that it's missing imo are longer songs/epics. I like the shorter/no-nonsense song format they've been doing for a while now, but longer songs don't just have to be a 5 minute song with other 5 minutes of instrumental wanking in it. I've been in a big Neal Morse/Transatlantic epic mood lately, where I'm mostly listening to the 20 or 30 minute epics while going out for walks and there's just so much you can do with song structures in lenghty epics in prog rock/metal, and DT can do that well. I'm hoping for some of that on DT15.
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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #31 on: December 23, 2020, 11:21:55 AM »
Still easily my least fave of the MM albums unfortunately. For me, there’s nothing extraordinary on it, just a lot of competence. Nothing close to the highs of songs like Breaking All Illusions, and several pretty bland tracks.

Offline Madman Shepherd

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #32 on: December 23, 2020, 12:28:34 PM »
D/T still does it for me but I haven't listened to it in quite awhile. The fact that I don't drive into work anymore AND there is new music out there is the main reason why.

And at the risk of derailing this thread, What is this infatuation with Kevin Moore? His work with DT only consisted of 2 albums. Yes - I know he played on Awake but he was so checked out by then that he should have been considered a session keyboardist.

I don't think that's accurate. He wasn't into the collaboration as much but he was still very much a part of the process

Offline kirksnosehair

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #33 on: December 23, 2020, 12:50:28 PM »
I don't like to judge songs on what I think they should be, but PBD is a real missed opportunity in my book. Some good elements there, lots of potential.... it just didn't come together well.


This is a really perfect summary of how I feel about that track. The first time I heard it the intro made me very excited for what I thought was to come, but it never seems to quite deliver that especially special "thing" that characterizes songs like Learning To Live or Blind Faith or Lines In The Sand. 


Even though I rank DoT as a middle of the pack album I still think Dream Theater have at least one more true masterpiece-level album in them.  I didn't think Fates Warning would ever manage to put out an album like "Theories of Flight" at that point in their careers, but that album blew me away.  I'm ready for Dream Theater to blow me away again.

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Re: Distance Over Time - TWO Years on...
« Reply #34 on: December 23, 2020, 12:55:39 PM »
Weird opinion: Pale Blue Dot should have been Illumination Theory.

More precisely, the subject matter was more fitting, mood wise, with the music of Illiumination Theory and there should have been a swap of lyrics.

IT lyrics are fine per se and do fit the music, but the way I see the Pale Blue Dot speech by Sagan, that is a celebration of humility, an ode to all the beautiful things we can find on this planet despite our complete cosmic irrevelance. A wonderful "we don't mean anything and that precisely is why we mean so much" speech. That speech would have been adapted way better over Illumination Theory's music, especially the last part. A relatively short song (stretched by an insane solo section) with a couple of menacing sounding verses just doesn't do it for that wonderful, amazing and awe-inspiring Sagan speech.
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